Thursday, November 21, 2013

My stepfather's father died this month at the age of 91. Lt Col. Frank Crook joined the air force 10 days after Pearl Harbor on the day he turned 20 years old. He was a fighter pilot and later served in the Korean War. He traveled all over the world and retired to Shreveport LA.

I knew him as a kind, generous man who was always by the side of his wife Joyce. I never saw the two of them apart. For the past ten years, they sent cards to my children every Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter. A ten dollar bill always fell out when they opened up the holiday greeting.

This afternoon, when I grabbed the mail, I saw two cards addressed to Luke and Emma in beautiful script that will soon be extinct in the modern world. As they opened up their Happy Thanksgiving cards, the money fell out, as expected.

In the middle of her heartbreak, Joyce remembered to send my children their cards. I am simply stunned by our elders and their adherence to doing things in a mindful and honorable way.

As I ponder the loss of the greatest generation, I hope that somewhere along the way, we pick up some of their habits.